The first regular session of the National Assembly since the inception of the Lee Jae Myung administration began for its 100-day run on Monday.
Amid prolonged political discord, the ruling Democratic Party’s representatives attended the opening ceremony in hanbok, Korea’s traditional attire, as proposed by National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik to promote interest in Korean culture.
The main opposition People Power Party lawmakers, on the other hand, appeared in black suits and ties, as if dressed for a funeral, to protest what they see as the ruling side’s misuse of its majority status in the Assembly.
During the general session, the ruling side has pledged to see various reforms through to completion and replace the prosecution with entirely new institutions.
It also intends to extend the deadlines for three special counsel investigations concerning alleged misconduct under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, including the December 3 martial law incident.
The opposition, for its part, ramped up an offensive against President Lee’s summit with U.S. President Donald Trump last week, calling it fruitless, and slammed the ruling party’s plans to establish a special tribunal to judge the martial law case, calling it “anti-democratic.”